Thin plate storage container

ABSTRACT

A wafer storage container has a container body and a lid. Thin plates are inserted into and picked up from the container body. The container has lid supporters placed on a lid receptacle of the container body, and contacting portions contact with the lid supporters to support the lid. A supporting member is a member attached to support the container body. The supporting member has a base plate portion to support the container body, side plate portions formed as standing from the base plate portion, and a handle on each side plate gripped to lift the container body. The thin plate supporting member has contacting portions to support thin plates, supporting members to support the contacting portions elastically, and base supporting bar portions to support the supporting portions. Tip end of each supporting portion contacts with a contacting portion of each supporting stage, and elastically supports the contacting portions from both sides.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims, under 35 USC 119, priority of JapaneseApplication No. 2002-349457 filed Dec. 2, 2002 and Japanese ApplicationNo. 2003-35062 filed Feb. 13, 2003.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a thin plate storage container, inwhich the load on the container body in transportation is reduced toimprove sealing. The present invention further relates to a thin platestorage container for securely supporting a plurality of thin platesstored within the container body.

The transportable containers for containing and transportingsemiconductor silicon wafers are generally known. In such a wafercontainer, it is important to keep its inside clean to prevent dirt andthe like from collecting on the surfaces of contained semiconductorsilicon wafers during transportation. For this purpose, the container issealed tightly, usually by a sealing member on the lid of the container,which sealing member contacts the container body to seal it when the lidcloses the container body.

In addition, the thin plate storage containers have a handle on eachside of to be gripped for carrying by hand.

Semiconductor silicon wafers are stored in the in the above-mentionedcontainers for transfer to a semiconductor manufacturing factory and thelike, where the container goes through a production line.

Moreover, it is necessary that the wafer container support thesemiconductor silicon wafers at regularly spaced intervals to keep themfrom contacting each other. Therefore supporting members are placed onboth the interior of the container body and on the interior side of thelid to support semiconductor silicon wafers at regularly spacedintervals.

An example of a supporting member incorporated into a lid is illustratedin FIG. 26. This supporting member is disclosed in Japanese TOKUHYOHEINo.4-505263. As shown in FIG. 26, an upper cover 35 has a holder 36 forsupporting semiconductor silicon wafers from above, mounted on its innerside. The semiconductor silicon wafers 37 are stored in the containerbody (not illustrated) positioned below the upper cover 35.

The wafer holder 36 has supporting arm portions 38 alternately extendingfrom right and left. Base ends of the supporting arms 38 are fixed tothe interior side of upper cover 35, and the opposite ends extend towardthe semiconductor silicon wafers 37. A holddown member 39 at the tip ofeach of the supporting arm 38 engages an edge portion of a semiconductorsilicon wafers 37 to support each semiconductor silicon wafer 37 atregularly spaced intervals.

In order to manually lift and lower for transport and the like, a workergrips the handles to hold the thin plate storage container. However,since the handles are located on the sidewalls of the thin plate storagecontainer, the sidewalls receive a load when the thin plate storagecontainer is lifted, whereby the opening of the container body can beslightly distorted and the sealing member can slip slightly. This effectis undesirable although there is no problem with the sealing.

There is a slight gap between the container body and the lid when thecontainer body is fitted with the lid. Although there is no problem innormal use of the thin plate storage container, there is the possibilitythat the thin plate storage container will receive a shock when the thinplate storage container is mounted in use. In this case, the lid canslip because of the gap between the container body and the lid and thesealing member will also slip. In such an event, although there is nosealing problem, the result is not the desired perfection.

Moreover, in the thin plate storage container having the above-describedstructure, each of the supporting arm portions 38 of the wafer holder 36is cantilevered such that base end of the arm is fixed to the uppercover 35 and the distal end is free. The supporting arm portions 38thereby hold the semiconductor silicon wafers 37 with a comparativelyweak force, and it is difficult to strongly hold the semiconductorsilicon wafers 37. Therefore, it is difficult to securely hold asemiconductor silicon wafer 37 of a large radius and heavy weight andthere is the problem that the semiconductor silicon wafers 37 shakewithin the container.

Because the wafer holder 36 is cantilevered, i.e. each holddown member39 pivots about its base, if the semiconductor silicon wafers 37 slip,there is the problem that friction is generated between the holddownmembers 39 and the semiconductor silicon wafers 37 and particulatematter thereby generated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The aim of the present invention is to provide a thin plate storagecontainer wherein the lid is prevented from slipping, the load on thecontainer body in conveyance is reduced to improve sealing, and aplurality of the thin plates can be securely held within the containerbody.

The thin plate storage container of the first embodiment of the presentinvention comprises a container body, for storing a plurality of thinplates, and a lid for closing and sealing the container body. The lid istaken off to remove and insert the thin plates into the container bodylying broadwise. The container body includes four side walls extendingto a lid receptacle (flange) for receiving the lid and surrounding theopening of the container body, and lid support inserts located on atleast the bottom edge of the lid receptacle when the container body liesbroadwise, to support the lid. Lid edge inserts, e.g., corner insertslocated on the periphery of the lid opposite the lid support inserts,cooperate with the lid support inserts to support the lid.

Owing to the lid support inserts in the lid receptacle of the containerbody directly contacting the lid edge inserts on the periphery of thelid or with a slight gap therebetween when the lid is placed on thecontainer, if the container body receives a shock through carelesshandling of the thin plate storage container, the lid will not slip fromthe container body.

It is preferred that each of the lid support inserts be formed as aconvex dovetail to mate with a dovetail groove in the lid receptacle,and that the contacting surface of each of the lid support inserts beplanar.

The lid receptacle is a flange including four corner portions, fourplanar edge surfaces connecting and integral with the four cornerportions and a shoulder portion spaced from the container opening by theplanar edge surfaces.

Generation of dust and the like can be kept to the minimum because eachcontacting surface is planar. The material of the lid support insertsand that of the corner inserts are selected to minimize dust generationwhen they are rubbed by each other.

It is preferable that each of the corner inserts includes a fixing plateportion to be inserted into and fixed in an engagement groove located ata corner of the lid, and that the contacting plate portion of the cornerinsert be curved to conform to the corner of the lid and that theoutside of the contacting plate portion form planar contacting surfacesfor contacting the lid support inserts.

The contacting plate portion is positioned to cover a corner of the lidby insertion of the fixing plate portion into the engagement groove atthe corner of the lid. Thus mounted, the planar contacting surfaces, atboth ends of the contacting plate, are in contact with a lid supportinsert to support the lid. Thereby, the lid scarcely slips when thecontainer body receives a shock, and sealing quality is improved.

The thin plate storage container of the second embodiment comprises acontainer body for storing and holding a plurality of thin plates in aclean condition, and a lid for closing and sealing the interior of thecontainer body. When the container body is lying broadwise, it rests ona supporting member fitted thereto, and which comprises a base platepositioned under and supporting the container body, when lyingbroadwise, and side plates extending from opposing ends of the baseplate portion.

Handles are provided on the side plates for lifting the container body.When these handles are gripped and lifted, the supporting member is helddirectly, with the container body supported by the base plate. Thereby,any distortion caused by lifting is absorbed by the base plate and theside plates of the supporting member, so that any ill effect on thecontainer body is minimized.

It is preferable that detents be provided in opposing side walls of saidcontainer body so that the container body can be supported more securelyby the supporting members by engagement with lugs on the opposingsidewalls of the container body with the side plates of the supportingmember.

It is preferable that conveyor rails be provided on the side plates ofthe supporting member so that the thin plate storage container 1 can betransferred by suspension from the conveyor rails of a conveyor in aproduction line or the like without any further attachment ormodification.

It is preferable that positioning means be provided on the base plateportion of the supporting member for precise adjustment of the mountingposition of the container body.

The thin plate storage container of the third embodiment comprises acontainer, for storing and supporting a plurality of thin plates inclean condition, a lid for closing and sealing the container body, and athin plate supporting member on the inner surface of the lid to supportthe thin plates at regular intervals. The thin plate supporting membercomprises contacting portions for engaging the periphery of each of thethin plates, supporting portions which elastically support thecontacting portions, and a base support bar fixed to the inside of thelid to integrally support all of the plurality of the supportingportions aligned in parallel at regular intervals. Each base of thesupporting portions is integrally connected with the base support bar,and the contacting portions are positioned in the middle of thesupporting portions, and the tip of the supporting portions contact theinner surface of the lid to elastically support the contacting portionsfrom both sides. Thin plates having large diameter and heavy mass canthereby be held securely because the supporting portions elasticallysupport the contacting portions from both sides.

It is preferable that base side of each supporting portion be formedrelatively long, and that the tip side be formed relatively shorter.Since the distance between the base support bar portion and each of thecontacting portions is relatively long, the supporting portions push thecontacting portions of the thin plate with a weak force. In addition,because each tip side of the contacting portions is in contact with theinner surface of the lid, the contacting portions are elasticallysupported from both sides. The contacting portions are pushed toward theperiphery of the thin plates with a strong force since the tip sidesextending from the contacting portions are relatively short. Althoughthere is no difference in elastic coefficient between the two portionson opposite sides of each contacting portion, the supporting portionssupport the contacting portions with strong force since the tip sidesare relatively short.

It is preferable that the supporting portions are formed to extend, atboth sides of the contacting portions toward the thin plates within thecontainer body, so as to exert a strong elastic force.

It is preferable that support stages be provided on the inner surface ofthe lid to support the tip ends of the supporting portions. Thus, thesupporting portions are supported from both sides by the support stageson the inner surface of the lid to support the tips of the supportingportions. Therefore the contacting portions are supported by thesupporting portions from both sides.

It is preferable that engagement portions which engage and support thetip ends of the supporting portions are formed on the support stages, sothat the tip of each of the supporting portions is supported securely byengagement with the engagement portions of the support stages.Therefore, the contacting portions are stably supported by thesupporting portions.

It is preferable that support stages be fixed to the inner side of thelid to support the contacting portions elastically from the tip side,whereby the contacting portions are elastically supported by contactwith the support stages fixed to the inner side of the lid.

The thin plate supporting members are arranged opposing each other, withthe contacting portions of both aligned and spaced to support the thinplates at regular intervals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view of a main part of a container bodyof a wafer storage container according to a first embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a container body of a wafer storagecontainer according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a lid support insert.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the lid support insert of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the lid support insert of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the lid support insert of FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a modified lid support insert.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a corner portion of the lid.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the lid.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a lid corner insert.

FIG. 11 is a top view of the lid corner insert of FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a supporting member.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the wafer storage container of theinvention.

FIG. 14 is a top view showing the wafer storage container.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a main part of the wafer storagecontainer.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a detent.

FIG. 17 is a perspective (“top”) view of a thin plate supporting memberof a thin plate storage container according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the container body of the thin platestorage container according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of the lid of the thin plate storagecontainer according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of the reverse side (bottom) of the thinplate supporting member of FIG. 17.

FIG. 21 is a side view showing the thin plate supporting member as shownin FIGS. 17 and 20.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing a strip projection on the lid ofthe thin plate storage container according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of the thin plate supporting member of thesecond embodiment (FIGS. 17, 20 and 21), mounted on the stripprojections (FIG. 22).

FIG. 24 is a side view of a first modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a side view of the second modification of the secondembodiment.

FIG. 26 is a sectional view of a main part of a thin plate supportingmember of the prior art.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described by way of twoembodiments with reference to the attached drawings.

First Embodiment

In the first embodiment, a storage container to store and transportsemiconductor silicon wafers as thin plates is given as an example.

This wafer storage container 1 comprises, as shown in FIGS. 2, 9, and13, a container body 2 for supporting a plurality of semiconductorsilicon wafers (not shown), and wafer supporting plates (not shown) onthe inside surface of two sidewalls inside of this container body 2facing each other to support a plurality of semiconductor siliconwafers, stored in parallel and at regular intervals, from both sides ofthe wafer. A lid 3 seals the upper opening of the container body 2 andkeeps the inside clean. A supporting member 4 supports the containerbody 2.

The container body 2 is formed generally in the shape of a cube. Forsupporting detachable wafer supporting plates, a plurality of supportingprotrusions 6 is placed on rear side and back side, inside of sidewallportions 2A and 2B of the container body 2. A lid receptacle 7 surroundsthe opening of the container body 2 to engage with the lid. This lidreceptacle 7 (flange) is formed by extending the upper edges of the sidewalls of the container body 2 to the outer diameter of the lid.

Engagement slots 8 are formed in the lid receptacle 7 to engage withstop rollers 14 of the lid 3 (FIG. 9). These engagement slots 8 areprovided at each of four corners.

Lid support inserts 10 are placed at each of the four corners of the lidreceptacle. Lid support inserts 10 are, as shown in FIG. 1-6, formedlike wedges having dovetail on both sides to engage dovetail grooves onthe lid receptacle 7. At the center surface of each lid support insert10, a protruding ridge 11 extends the entire length of the lid supportinsert. A taper is formed on the outside of the protruding ridge 11(right side of FIG. 4) to prevent contact with corner inserts 16 whenthe lid 3 is attached and detached. On the rear side of the protrudingridge 11 is a contact protrusion 11A. This contact protrusion 11A ispositioned to contact a corner insert 16, and is formed flat. Sincethere is a taper on the contact protrusion 11A, uneven contactingpressure results over all the contacting surface, and dust is generated.Besides, although the contact protrusion 11A is narrow because of theconfiguration of the protruding ridge 11, the area of the contactprotrusion 11A is set to provide a balance between load and friction. Itis preferable that the contact protrusion 11A be as narrow as possiblesince there is a possibility of contact between the corner insert andthe lid support insert 10 when the lid 3 is attached and detached. Onthe other hand, the protruding ridge 11 must support the weight of thelid 3. For this reason, the area of the contact protrusion 11A isminimized to balance the weight of the lid 3. If the lid 3 is large andheavy, to broaden its contacting area, the protruding ridge 11 can beomitted as in FIG. 7.

A pair of lid support inserts 10 is placed at each four corners of thelid receptacle 7. In particular, the pair of lid support inserts 10 isengaged with a pair of dovetail grooves on each of four corners of thelid receptacle 7, so that each pair of the lid support inserts 10 ateach corner of the lid receptacle 7 supports each corner of the lid 3squarely.

The lid 3 is, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, formed as a thick quadrangularplate and mates with the lid receptacle 7 of the container body 2. Aflange portion 3A is formed on the outer side of the lid 3 (lower partof FIG. 9) to cover the outside of the lid receptacle 7 when the lid 3is seated within the lid receptacle 7. A stop roller 14 is located neareach corner of the lid 3. On the surface of the lid 3, a pair of keyopenings (shown in FIG. 13) is provided to retract each stop roller 14freely. The stop roller 14 is connected by a link (not shown) whereby itis extended to engage within an engagement slot 8 by insertion androtation of the key. The key is placed on an arm of a transportmechanism in a production line or the like, and then the lid 3 isautomatically attached and detached. A sealing member (not shown) isplaced on the inside periphery of the lid 3.

Corner inserts 16 are located at each corner of the lid 3. These cornerinserts 16 contact the lid support inserts 10 of the container body 2 tosupport the lid 3. Each of the corner inserts 16 includes a fixing plateportion 17 and a contacting plate portion 18, as shown in FIGS. 10 and11. The fixing plate portion 17 has a shaft hole 17A, and the fixingplate portion 17 is inserted into and fixed within a groove (not shown)at each corner of the periphery of the lid 3. The contacting plateportion 18 is curved to cover a corner of the lid 3. Both sides of theouter surface of the contacting plate portion 18 are formed as flat(planar) contacting surfaces 18A for contact with the contact protrusion11A of the lid support inserts 10. Support legs 18B are formed at bothends of the contacting plate portion 18. These support legs 18B bendinward to support the contacting surface 18A by contact with peripheralwall of the lid 3. Each contacting surface 18A contacts a contactprotrusion 11A of the lid support insert 10 to support the lid 3.Therefore, if the lid body 2 receives a shock, the lid 3 does not slip.

The material of the lid support inserts 10 and the corner insert 16 mustbe a material that generates little dust when these elements contacteach other. In particular, PBT (polybutylene terephthalate) resin, PEEK(polyether ether keton) resin, polyacetal resin, supermacromolecular PE(polyethylene) resin, or nylon resin is used as the material of the lidsupport insert 10. Alternatively, PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) and/orcarbon fiber are also suitable. PBT resin, PEEK resin, polyacetal resin,supermacromolecular PE resin, nylon resin, and PTFE and/or carbon fiber,in addition to the five aforementioned materials, are suitable for thecorner insert 16. These materials may be suitably paired so as togenerate little dust by friction.

On the rear side of the lid 3, there is a thin plate supporting member40, the structure of which is described in more detail in connectionwith the second embodiment below.

Supporting member 4, which supports the container body 2, comprises, asshown in FIG. 12-16, a base plate portion 21, sidewalls 22 and 23, andhandles 24.

The base plate portion 21 is a plate which directly supports thecontainer body 2. The base plate portion 21 supports the container body2 (lower part in FIG. 13) when laid on its side. The supporting member 4and the container body 2 are fastened to each other by screws with aplurality of supporting bars 26, placed on the surface of the base plateportion 21 and supporting the container body 2. In addition, positioningengagement portions 27 (“positioning means”) are provided on the baseplate portion 21 for adjusting the mounting position of the thin platestorage container. This storage container is provided with threeengagement elements, 27A, 27B, and 27C. Each of the three engagementelements, 27A, 27B, and 27C, consists of a V-shaped groove. The anglebetween the longer axes of the engagement elements, 27A, 27B, and 27C isgenerally 120°, and the three engagement elements are oriented in threedifferent directions. The dimensions, angle and the like of thepositioning engagement portions 27 have been standardized. There arethree engagement protrusions (not shown) at positions corresponding tothe position of and mating with each of the engagement elements, 27A,27B, and 27C, when the container body 2 is mounted. These engagementprotrusions control the position of the container body 2 precisely byrespectively engaging the engagement elements 27A, 27B, and 27C.

Side plates 22 and 23 extend perpendicular from opposite ends of thebase plate 21. Handles 24, detents 28, and conveyor rails 29 areprovided on the side plates 22 and 23. The handles 24 for lifting thecontainer body 2 are formed integral with the upper ends of the sideplates 22 and 23. The detents 28 are located on the forward edges of theside plates 22 and 23 (near edge of FIG. 12). The detents 28 are formedin the side plates 22 and 23 as thinned and hollowed recesses forreceiving lugs 30 to be described below.

The lugs 30 are designed to securely support the supporting member 4 onthe container body 2 by engaging with the detents 28 and thereby preventthe side plates 22 and 23 from opening. The lugs 30 are located on theouter surfaces of the side plates 2A and adjacent the opening 2B of thecontainer body 2 (right side of FIG. 15). The cross-section of the lugs30 is L-shaped so that the lugs 30 engage the detents 28 on the sideplates 22 and 23.

The conveyor rails 29, located on the outside of each side plate 22 and23 allow the containers 1 to be suspended from and carried by conveyorsof a production line or the like within a factory. The conveyor rails 29are flat plates and are horizontally aligned along the entire length(longitudinal dimension) of each side plate 22 and 23.

Reinforcement ribs are placed lengthwise and crosswise on the base plate21 and side plates 22 and 23 to reinforce the entire body.

When semiconductor silicon wafers are placed in the container body 2 andthen the lid 3 is put in place, the lid support inserts 10 on the lidreceptacle 7 of the container body 2 and the corner inserts 16 of thelid 3 directly contact each other, or have a slight gap. The waferstorage container 1 is then conveyed to its destination in this state.

During conveyance, if the container body 2 receives a shock due tocareless handling or the like, the lid support inserts 10, in contactwith the corner inserts 16, support the lid 3 to prevent slip of the lid3 from the container body 2.

Generation of dust and the like is minimized because the lid supportinserts 10 and the corner inserts 16 are made of PBT resin, PEEK resin,polyacetal resin, supermacromolecular PE resin, or nylon resin, and eachcontacting surface, 11A and 18A, is planar.

When holding the handles 24 and lifting the wafer storage container 1the supporting member 4 is held directly, and the container body 2 issupported by the base plate 21. At this time, the side plates 22 and 23are supported without opening since the latch fingers 30 on thesidewalls 2A and 2B of the container body 2 engage with the fingerreceptacle portions 28 on the side plate portions 22 and 23 of thesupporting member 4, and when the handles 24 are held to lift the waferstorage container 1, the side plate portions 22 and 23 are stabilizedwithout vacillation. There is no distortion or the like when held by thehandles 24 because the distorting force is absorbed by the side plates22 and 23 of the support member 4 and the base plate 21, and the affecton the container body 2 is thereby minimized. Therefore, there is noadverse effect on the sealing member between the container body 2 andthe lid 3.

In a production line or the like in a factory, the conveyor rails 29 areheld by a conveyor to transport the container. In addition, thepositioning engagement elements 27 are used to precisely position thecontainer body 2 when the container is mounted on a mounting stand.

As described above, if the container body 2 receives a shock, the lidsupport inserts 10 and the corner inserts 16 directly contact each otherand the lid is supported without slip from the container body 2.Moreover, slip of the sealing member between the container body 2 andthe lid 3 is prevented and the sealing quality of the seal of the waferstorage container 1 is thereby improved.

Generation of dust and the like is minimized because the contactprotrusion 11A of each lid support insert 10 and the contacting surface18A of the corner insert 16 are planar and the material of eachcontacting surface is carefully selected.

Modifications:

(1) Although the lid support inserts 10 and the corner inserts 16 areprovided at each of four corners of the lid 3 in the first embodiment,the lid support inserts 10 and the corner inserts 16, alternatively, canbe provided only on the lower edges of the container body 2 and lid 3.In this case, the same advantage as in above-described embodiment isachieved when the container is handled. The lid support inserts 10 andthe corner inserts 16 can be placed on all of the four edges of the lidand lid receptacle or on one edge only, according to the intended use.

(2) The base plate 21 and the side plates 22 and 23 of the supportingmember 4 are formed so that they can support the container body 2 andthe handles 24, so various shapes, not only planar, can be adopted forthem.

Second Embodiment

The second embodiment of the present invention is also illustrated, byway of example, as a storage container to store and carry thin-platesemiconductor silicon wafers (thin plates).

This wafer storage container 41 of the second embodiment, as shown inFIG. 18 and FIG. 19, comprises a container body 42 for storing aplurality of semiconductor silicon wafers (not shown) therein. Wafersupport plates 43 are provided on opposite side walls in the containerbody 42 for supporting the semiconductor silicon wafers from oppositesides of the wafers, which are stored within the container body, inparallel and at regular intervals. Lid 44 seals the upper opening of thecontainer body 44 and keeps the container's inside clean.

A lid receptacle 45 is provided around the opening of the container body42 to engage the lid 44. This lid receptacle (flange) 45 is similar toflange 7 of the first embodiment and is formed by enlarging the edges ofthe container body 42 surrounding the opening to meet the dimension ofthe lid. Various fixing means (not shown) are placed between the lid 44and the lid receptacle 45 to fix the lid 44 onto the container body 42.

A carrier flange 46 (FIG. 18) is engaged by an arm of a carriermechanism (not shown) on a production line when the container iscarried. A handle is provided to enable a worker to carry the containerby hand.

Thin plate supporting member 51 is fixed on the inner side of the lid 44(upper side in FIG. 19). The thin plate supporting member 51 serves tosupport the upper edges of the stored semiconductor silicon wafers atregular intervals. The thin plate supporting member 51 will next beexplained with reference to FIG. 17 and FIG. 19-23.

The thin plate supporting member 51 includes contacting portions 52which engage the peripheries of the semiconductor silicon wafers andthereby support the semiconductor silicon wafers. The contactingportions 53 are, in turn, elastically supported by supporting portions53. A base supporting bar 54 located on the inner side of the lid 44(upper side of FIG. 19) supports a plurality of the supporting portions53 in parallel, integrally and at regular intervals.

Engagement grooves 56 are formed in the surfaces of the contactingportions 52 facing the semiconductor silicon wafers. These engagementgrooves 56 serve to engage the peripheries of the semiconductor siliconwafers to support the wafers. The supporting portions 53 are providedintegrally on both sides of the contacting portions 52.

The supporting portions 53 are formed integral with the contactingportions 52 to support them. The supporting portions 53 are formed inthe shape of rods, are made of an elastic synthetic resin, and supportthe contacting portions 52. The contacting portions 52 are positioned atthe middle of the supporting portions 53. Therefore the contactingportions 52 divide the base supporting portions 53A from the tipsupporting portions 53B. Each base end of the tip supporting portions53B is formed integral with a contacting portion 52. Caul plate portions55 are formed at the ends of the tip supporting portions 53B. The caulplate portions 55 engage the engagement portions 62A of supportingstages 62 (as shown in FIG. 23) to support the tip supporting portions53B. The contacting portions 52 are thereby elastically supported by thebase supporting portions 53A and the tip supporting portions 53B fromopposite sides.

The base supporting portions 53A are formed relatively long, and the tipsupporting portions 53B are shorter. Since the base supporting portions53A are longer, the base supporting portions 53A press the contactingportions 52 onto the periphery of the semiconductor silicon wafers witha weak force at first when the contacting portions 52 contact theperipheries of the semiconductor silicon wafers. Then, since the tipsupporting portions 53B are shorter, the caul plate portions 55 at theend of the tip supporting portions 53B contact the inner surface of thelid 44, and support the contacting portions 52 with a strong force,whereby the contacting portions 52 are pressed onto the peripheries ofthe semiconductor silicon wafers with a strong force.

Depending on the situation, there may be gaps of a predetermined widthbetween the tip supporting portions 53B and the engagement portions 62Aof the supporting stages 62 (FIG. 23). If a gap is present, thecontacting portions 52 are supported by only the base supportingportions 53A from one side and therefore support the semiconductorsilicon wafers with a weak force. In addition, if the semiconductorsilicon wafers are shaken hard by an external force such that the waferstorage container 41 is swung or the like, the contacting portions 52are pushed and thereby the tip supporting portions 53B come into contactwith the engagement portions 62A of the supporting stages 62 toelastically support the semiconductor silicon wafers with a strongforce. On the other hand, if gaps are not present, the semiconductorsilicon wafers are supported with strong force from the start.

In the supporting portions 53, both sides of the contacting portions 52are formed to protrude in the direction of the semiconductor siliconwafers stored in the container body 42. Slanted portions of thesupporting portions 53 serve to enhance the elastic force of thesupporting portions 53.

Base supporting bars 54 are integral with and support supportingportions 53 in parallel and at regular intervals. These base supportingbars 54 are also engaged with support grooves 64 (FIG. 22) to be fixedon inner side of the lid 44.

Projecting strips 61 on the inner side of the lid 44 support the tips ofthe supporting portions 53. The strips are formed with supporting stages62 and supporting recesses 63 aligned alternately. Two supportingrecesses 63 are arranged in parallel on the inner side of the lid 44.This structure supports caul plates 55 opposite two thin platesupporting members 51. The supporting stages 62 of one strip are alignedwith the supporting recesses 63 of the other strip projection. Namely,the supporting stages 62 and the supporting recesses 63 are arrangedopposing each other.

The supporting stages 62 of the strips 61 support the caul plates 55 onthe distal ends of the supporting portions (arms) 53. The engagementportions 62A are formed on the supporting stages 62 to engage the caulplates 55 on the tips of the supporting portions 53 and to support thecaul plates 55. The engagement portions 62A are formed as recesses andengage the caul plates 55 to prevent rightward and leftward slip.

The supporting recesses 63 engage and support the base supportingportions 53A. The supporting recesses 63 are cut deeper into strips 61than the supporting stages 62. The height of the supporting recesses 63is set optimally according to the intended use. If a user wants tosupport the semiconductor silicon wafers with strong force, the heightof the supporting recesses 63 should be set so that the base supportingportions 53A are in contact with the supporting recesses 63. On theother hand, if a user does not wants to support the wafers with strongforce, the height of the supporting recesses 63 should be set so thatthe base supporting portions 53A are not in contact with the supportingrecesses 63.

The two strip projections 61 are provided with grooved supports 64 toengage and support the base support bars 54 of the thin plate supportingmember 51. The grooves of the grooved supports 64 are sized to mate withthe base support bars 54. Two base supporting bar portions 54 of thethin plate supporting members 51 opposing each other are fitted withinthe grooves of grooved supports 64, and are thereby aligned to supportthe semiconductor silicon wafers at regular intervals. The two thinplate supporting members 51 have the same structure and are opposed toeach other.

In use, a plurality of semiconductor silicon wafers is stored inside thecontainer body 42 wherein they are supported by the wafer supportingplates 43 at regular intervals. The lid 44 is then fitted on thecontainer body 42 whereby the contacting portions 52 of the thin platesupporting members 51 engage and support each semiconductor siliconwafer.

When the lid 44 is fully seated in the lid receptacle 45, the contactingportions 52 are pushed up by the silicon wafers toward the inner side ofthe lid 44. Thereby the base supporting portions 53A, support thecontacting portions 52 with a weak force which is received by thesemiconductor silicon wafers. However, if the caul plate portions 55engage the engagement portions 62A of the supporting stages 62, thecontacting portions 52 are supported from both sides, and thesemiconductor silicon wafers are then supported by a stronger force.Further, if the base supporting portions 53A come into contact with thesupporting recesses 63, then the supporting stages 62 and the supportingrecesses 63, opposite each other, also support the contacting portions52, i.e. support the supporting portions 53 directly and the contactingportions 52 indirectly, whereby each semiconductor silicon wafer issupported by a yet stronger force.

The above-described structure serves to support both small lightsemiconductor silicon wafers and large heavy semiconductor siliconwafers securely with optimum force.

Moreover, almost no dust is generated at points of contact, sogeneration of dust and the like can be minimized.

Since the thin plate supporting member 51 is formed so that thecontacting portions 52 are aligned oppositely and alternately, thedistance between the contacting portions 52 and between the supportingportions 53 of the thin plate supporting member 51 can be relativelywide and the thin plate supporting members 51 can be molded more easily.The structure of the metal mold can be simplified, whereby the metalmold can be made inexpensively and the production cost of the thin platesupporting member 51 can be reduced.

Modifications of the Second Embodiment

(1) Although two thin plate supporting members 51 are used in the secondembodiment as described above, one, two or more than three thin platesupporting members 51 can also be used according to the number of thesemiconductor silicon wafers to store and the same function and effectas in the above-described embodiments can be obtained.

(2) Although the supporting stages 62 are placed on the inner side ofthe lid 44 to support the tip ends of the supporting portions 53 in thesecond embodiment, it is also possible to locate the supporting stageportions 71 on the caul plate portions 55 as shown in FIG. 24. Further,as shown in FIG. 25, it is also possible to elongate and extend the tip(distal) supporting portions 53B to the inner side of the lid 44 tobecome lid support inserts 72, while realizing the same function andeffect as in as above-described embodiments.

(3) Although semiconductor silicon wafers are mentioned as an example ofthin plates in the foregoing description of the first and secondembodiments, other thin plates, such as glass plates, memory discs andthe like, can be also be used within the thin plate storage container ofpresent invention.

1. (canceled)
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 4. A thin plate storagecontainer including a container body for storing a plurality of thinplates in a clean condition, a lid for closing and sealing the interiorof the container body, and a supporting member for receiving, matingwith and supporting the container body; wherein said supporting membercomprises: a base plate portion; two side plate portions extending fromopposing ends of the base plate portion and standing upright when thebase plate portion is horizontally oriented; and two handlesrespectively located on the two side plate portions for lifting thecontainer body.
 5. The thin plate storage container according to claim4, further comprising a plurality of detents on opposing side walls ofthe container body for interlocking with the side plate portions of thesupporting member.
 6. The thin plate storage container according toclaim 4, further comprising a conveyor rail on each of the side plateportions of the supporting member.
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